Leo Brings Adam Sandler’s Charms to a Younger Generation
Truth be told, I’m not really in the Adam Sandler demographic. I don’t mind him as an actor. In fact, I found him rather compelling in movies such as Hustle and Uncut Gems. But I’ve never been a fan of his aw-shucks onscreen persona or that particularly grating whine that his schtick can sometimes involve. I’m also amused by what one of my (non-Paste) editors described as the “Adam Sandler Family Industrial Complex” when discussing potential interest in reviewing You Are So Not Invited To My Bat Mitzvah. All of this to say, I was pleasantly surprised by Leo, an animated movie starring Sandler, his wife Jackie and kids Sadie and Sunny, as well as an ensemble cast including the likes of Bill Burr, Cecily Strong and Rob Schneider.
My two kids (ages 13 and 11) and I didn’t expect much from Leo the lizard (Sandler), a class pet, and the friendship that evolves between the reptile and the Florida students in their final year of elementary school. But we were pleasantly surprised; my kids were in stitches at several spots, while I was quite amused.
Leo proved to be a perfect, lighthearted watch on a rainy evening that left us with a feeling of bonhomie before switching off the lights for the night. Will it help my children discover the comedic antics of the former SNL star? Unlikely. But now they might not have quite the same bored face when I pull up a clip of Sandler singing “The Chanukah Song,” especially when I tell them it’s the same guy who sang a pretty grim lullaby as Leo.
Part of Leo’s charm lies in the story. Leo is 74 years old, and has shared the same glass tank with Squirtle the Turtle (Burr) for more than seven decades. When Leo learns that he may only have another year to live, he wants to make a mad dash for the Everglades and catch the sunsets in the wild before his own final sunset.
An opportunity presents itself when the mean substitute teacher Mrs. Malkin (Strong) forces the students to take one of the pets home for the weekend. Summer (Sunny Sandler), the class keener who can bore everyone into facial paralysis with her neverending spiels, gets the first assignment. While making his escape, Leo accidentally lets slip that he can talk. And it turns out that he’s a good listener too. Years of watching the kids go in and out of the classroom makes him a de facto therapist, and he dispenses his wisdom generously, often in nonsensical songs.
Soon enough, Leo becomes an advice expert for the whole class. Each student thinks they are the only one who knows Leo can talk, so there’s the added element of keeping a secret. But it all comes to head when jealousy and betrayal are added to the mix. Suddenly Leo finds himself unwillingly in the Everglades, and a rescue mission is mounted.
Given the simplicity of the story, most of Leo’s appeal comes from its comic observations. Take, for example, Leo and Squirtle discussing the new batch of kids introduced at the beginning of the year. The montage is full of wisecracks you might expect at an elementary school stand-up:
“There’s the snotty clique.”